(8-19-2001)

Marlin Wins at Michigan: #40-Sterling Marlin wins the Pepsi 400 at Michigan Intl Speedway when the race was called after 162 laps because of rain. It is Marlins first win since July 6, 1996 at Daytona (also in the Pepsi 400) a streak of 169 races. It is also Dodge's first Winston Cup win since Neil Bonnett won at Ontario CA on Nov 20, 1977 in the #5 Dodge. It was also the first win for a Coor's sponsored car since Kyle Petty won at Dover in June 1995. #32-Ricky Craven came home 2nd(his career best) with #9-Bill Elliott in 3rd.
#24-Jeff Gordon's Winston Cup Drivers Points lead (now has 3353 points) is now 298 over #28-Ricky Rudd with #88-Jarrett now 354 behind in third and #40-Marlin sneaking up on Jarrett in 4th 381 behind.
See That's Racin' for the Pepsi 400 Unofficial Results, Unofficial Drivers Standings and for a column: Marlin, Dodge score at Michigan(8-19-2001)

(8-18-2001)

Lowes is Out at RCR: On Saturday morning, RCR announced its relationship with Lowe's, the sponsor of its #31 Chevy driven in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series by Skinner, would terminate at the end of this season. Last week RCR announced a long-term sponsorship agreement with Cingular Wireless, which is anticipated to be displayed on the #31 Monte Carlo. Childress also said he planned to make a driver announcement early in the next(NASCAR.com)(8-18-2001)

Humpy Bumper in Final Stages of Testing UPDATE 3: A new safety bumper designed to help absorb the energy of a frontal impact is in the final stages of testing and could be available for drivers before the end of the current Winston Cup season. Manufacturers of the so-called "Humpy Bumper," the brainchild of Lowe's Motor Speedway president H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler, are hopeful of receiving NASCAR approval soon after the completion of six crash tests scheduled later this month at the Charlotte racing facility. The final test, Aug. 28, will be open to the public. "NASCAR has been a great partner in helping us develop this," said Paul Lew, a Las Vegas-based composite materials design engineer and manufacturer working with Wheeler. The safety bumper has tested extraordinarily well, Lew said, in computer simulation and barrier testing, adding that the final hurdle is the crash tests in Charlotte.(CNN/SI), past news on the bumper on my Safety News PageUPDATE: hearing they are testing the Humpy Bumper at Las Vegas Motor Speedway today(8-16-2001)UPDATE 2: The developer of an energy-absorbing bumper said Thursday he anticipates NASCAR approving the safety device within two weeks. "We're working very closely with NASCAR and we're in the final stages right now," said Paul Lew, a Las Vegas-based composite materials engineer, designer and manufacturer. Lew said the 16-pound bumper, priced at $6,000, has gone through computer simulation testing, crash testing in a facility and crash testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Lew said he would not reveal any data until an Aug.28 news conference where a stock car with the bumper will be crash tested at Lowe's Motor Speedway.(Roanoke Times)(8-17-2001)UPDATE 3: Having completed three days of closed testing this week at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Paul Lew is confident his new energy-absorbing "Humpy Bumper" will be affixed to the front ends of NASCAR Winston Cup cars by next month. Lew, president of the Las Vegas-based Lew Composites, said this week's round of testing confirmed that the device will decrease the G-forces a driver is subjected to in head-on and near head-on crashes -- such as those that killed NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt, Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin and Tony Roper. A final, public test on Aug. 28, which originally had been planned for Las Vegas Motor Speedway, has been moved to Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., and will be attended by NASCAR race team officials and the media. Humpy Wheeler, after whom the "Humpy Bumper" is named, is president of Lowe's Motor Speedway and it is believed the test was moved to that track in deference to Wheeler.(Las Vegas Sun)(8-18-2001)

Why the telemetry box blew: A Roush Industries investigation revealed that, as expected, an interior short in a lithium battery ignited the fire in the cockpit of Robby Gordonís Chevrolet last week that cost Gordon a shot at victory in the Global Crossing at the Glen. The battery packs in the driver compartments are attached via "vibration mounts," but in the case of Gordonís car, its box apparently experienced " a lot more vibration than normal," according to Sportvisionís Peter Larsen, and spread to the other batteries. This week, to facilitate the needs of TNTís television coverage, the 12-volt lithium manganese dioxide batteries will be replaced by normal "D" alkaline batteries, and mounting procedures will be changed so that the vibration mounts do their job.(Gaston Gazette)(8-18-2001)

Jones/Mayfield in SI: Jeremy Mayfield and Buckshot Jones are the "tutors" in the Sports 101 section of Sports Illustrated this week (Aug. 20 cover date). They are the only two drivers quoted in a story on how to do "burnouts" on the race track. It was a result of Jeff Gordon's less-than-spectacular burnout attempt after his Indianapolis victory, rectified with a much better one following his Watkins Glen win. The Scorecard section is one of the most popular, and widely-read, sections of the national magazine, which has a national circulation of approximately 4,500,000.(Williams Company of America PR)(8-18-2001)

Sad News: Thursday evening, 16-year-old junior Nicole Bowman, was on her way home from volleyball practice with her brother Luke Bowman, 14, a freshman and soccer player at East Lincoln High school. She stopped for gas at East Lincoln Minimart, a gas station and convenience store six miles west of the school. As she pulled onto N.C. 73, she was hit on the driver's side by a pickup truck traveling east, highway patrol officers said and was killed in the car collision. The driver of the truck, Dan James Farnsworth, suffered minor injuries. Police say he won't be charged in the incident. Her brother was taken to Lincoln Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition Friday morning. Nicole is the granddaughter of NASCAR driver Dick Trickle, who also lives in Iron Station, NC. Nicole was well-known at the school for excellence in academics as well as athletics. The honors student played volleyball, basketball and softball for the school. Visitation is scheduled from 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday at St. Dorothy's Catholic Church on Highway 27 in Lincolnton. The funeral will be at 11 a.m. Monday at the church.(Charlotte Observer)(8-18-2001), see the Dick Trickle Fanclub site for their address for cards or condolences

(8-17-2001)

Stewart Injured UPDATE: hearing that Tony Stewart was on crutches with a elastic bandage on his left foot at the Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, IL on Tuesday night. When asked during the autograph session was told it was sprained when he fell over his dog while playing in his yard but Stewart said he would be fine at Michigan(8-16-2001)UPDATE: Tony Stewart was injured in an accident at home chasing his dog, P.J., up the stairs (outside) of his Cornelius, N.C. residence, when the six-month old pup veered in front of him. In an effort to avoid stepping on the dog, Stewart tried to jump over the dog, only to injure his left foot upon landing. The dog was fine, but Stewart's foot wasn't. The result was a sprained left foot. Following the morning practice for the Pepsi 400, Stewart was complaining of soreness while using the clutch, otherwise feels like he'll not have a problem this weekend(Insider Racing News) during qualifying on CNN/SI this was confirmed(8-17-2001)

Boxes Optional? UPDATE: Cars will likely not be required to carry the electronic boxes supplying telemetry about their performance and other data for the television broadcast in this weekend's races at Michigan(That's Racin')(8-17-2001)UPDATE: Telemetry boxes, including global positioning systems and in-car cameras, will be optional equipment this weekend for Winston Cup teams competing at Michigan. The decision on the telemetry units by the NASCAR competition department came in the wake of a cockpit fire that started in a NASCAR-mandated telemetry package mounted in Robby Gordonís #31 RCR Lowes Chevy at Watkins Glen(NASCAR.com)(8-17-2001)

No Backup for Skinner? Despite a noticeable limp, Mike Skinner says he'll be running the BGN #21 Rockwell Automation Chevy on Saturday and the Cup #31 Lowe's Chevy on Sunday without a backup driver. When asked if he would play it by ear on Saturday and try to find someone to drive the Cup car on Sunday if needed, Skinner replied, "Oh I'm sure they could get Robby Gordon up here in a hurry if they need to."(Insider Racing News)(8-17-2001)

(8-16-2001)

Penske to Dodge? on Wednesday's ESPN2's RPM2 Night. Robin Miller mentioned to look for Penske Racing(#'s 02,2,12) to go to Dodge in NASCAR for 2002. But back in Jan 2000, it was announced that Penske had signed with Ford to run the manufacturer thru 2002(8-16-2001)

Compton to RCR? UPDATE denied: Stacy Compton could be leaving Melling Racing by the end of the year. Sources say that he is being considered by Richard Childress Racing for the #31 Lowes Chevy or the #21 or #2 BGN cars. Compton is in the option year of his contact, but sources say that owner Mark Melling has agreed NOT to exercise the option, should Compton decide to join another team. The #92 Melling team is also looking for a primary sponsor for the 2002 season as Kodiak will leave at the end of this season(8-7-2001)UPDATE: Also mentioned for the #31 RCR ride was Stacy Compton, but Melling Racing(#92 Dodge) representatives say Compton has told them he has no plans to go elsewhere, despite the looming loss of sponsor Kodiak.(SpeedVision)(8-16-2001)

Morgan Shepherd at Michigan? UPDATE 2: hearing Morgan Shepherd, who will race his own #21 truck at Nashville this weekend, has entered the #89 Ford in the Michigan Cup race next week, supposedly has a known crew chief to help him out(8-9-2001)UPDATE: Shepherd is on NASCAR's Michigan Entry List in the #89, still no word on the crew chief(8-15-2001)UPDATE 2: I see #89-Morgan Shepherd has been removed from the Entry list at NASCAR.com, so that makes it 45 cars now AND heard Shepherd withdrew his entry at Michigan as the limited sponsorship money didn't show, and he will go to Chicago to run the CTS race instead(8-16-2001)

Special Assoc on the #99 at Michigan:Aerotek is going to have a logo on the #99 CITGO Superguard Ford this weekend at Michigan. It is the associate deal they normally have via Onsite Companies but they will run the Aerotek logo on it for the Pepsi 400 (lower door panel behind the number 99) because of their strong automotive presence in Detroit. Aerotek is going to have a hospitality rig at the track(8-16-2001)

More Jerry Jones: Hearing that Dallas Cowboy's Owenr Jerry Jones and the Cowboys Franchise is interested in the Body Dynamics/America's Most Wanted Racing(AMW) program as a possible partnership or underwriter. And that the team has received requests from McDonalds, Cingular, Hershey Foods, K-B Toys and Toys-R-us to just name a few that have requested information about the underwriting sponsorship opportunities for the America's Most Wanted Racing program, which they have decided to expand into BGN and Trucks series as well. Body Dynamics/America's Most Wanted Racing is also in the final stages of signing a deal with Robby Unser to drive the AMW CTS entry next season(8-16-2001)

Kranefuss/Robinson Waitng: Michael Kranefuss said Aug. 13 he expected to receive word within the next two to three weeks from Tropicana regarding its sponsorship of Shawna Robinson for the 2002 season. Tropicana sponsored Robinson at Chicagoland and Indianapolis, but the team failed to qualify for both events. Kranefuss said there was a possibility the team would compete in the BGN rather than Winston Cup. After failing to qualify for the Aug. 5 Brickyard 400, Robinson said she knew she needed more seat time and it was essential for her to race every week(Winston Cup Scene - need sub to read)(8-16-2001)

Stewart to be Inducted: Tony Stewart will be inducted into the National Midget Racing Hall of Fame Aug. 26. The induction ceremonies will be in the hall's new headquarters at Angell Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, WI(Winston Cup Scene - need sub to read)(8-16-2001)

(8-15-2001)

Evernham Motorsports Schemes: Evernham Motorsports, both the #9 and #19 cars will feature an agressive new paint scheme to help Dodge announce the promotion of its bold, new line of Dodge Ram Trucks and its new slogan, "Grab Life by the Horns."(Golin Harris PR), see an image on the Paint Scheme Gallery(8-15-2001)

Jerry Jones with Andy Petree? UPDATE: I am hearing Sports Illustrated is reporting that Andy Petree and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones are talking about a possible partnership of partial ownership and sponsorship for the #33 car of Joe Nemechek. According to the story, Jones wants partial ownership and Richard Childress, with who he has also had discussions, is not willing to do that. Petree and Jones have begun discussions along those lines(haven't seen it or seen it online)(8-13-2001)UPDATE: One man suddenly mentioned as such a potential partner is Jerry Jones, the owner of the Dallas Cowboys. Jones has been negotiating with Richard Childress for a NASCAR team deal for the past six months. "I have not talked with Jerry Jones, but I would like to talk to him, I really would," Petree said. "If the deal isn't going to happen with Childress, I'd like to talk to Jerry. There really isn't a story there yet. We're still trying to get Square D signed (renewing sponsorship for the Bobby Hamilton team), and hopefully that will happen by the end of the month. But we're not seeing the movement out there we'd like to see with our other team (Joe Nemechek)."(Winston Salem Journal)(8-15-2001)

KW back to Cup in 2002? on Monday's RPM 2Night show (ESPN2), Kenny Wallace was on the show and mentioned that he would run the New Hampshire Cup race with his BGN team (#48 Innovative Motorsports) and that the team is looking at moving up to Winston Cup in 2002 and hopes to decide soon(8-15-2001)

Martin on Two Minute Drill: Mark Martin made a special trip to New York City last Thursday on his way to Watkins Glen to be a celebrity panelist on ESPN's 2minute Drill. Other athletes on the panel included former Los Angeles Laker Kurt Rambis, former relief pitcher Dennis Eckersley and NFL Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris. The show will air on Monday, October 1 at 7:00pm/et on ESPN.(Roush Racing PR)(8-15-2001)

Lottery Happy with NASCAR and Hermie: Virginia Lottery officials have been so pleased with the agency's sponsorship of a NASCAR Winston Cup driver that they want to renew the deal next year, lottery officials said. The lottery is paying (#13) Hermie Sadler up to $600,000 to plaster its logo all over his cars and racing uniforms. ``In the 13-year history of the lottery, it is easily one of the most successful promotions we have ever done,'' said lottery spokesman Ed Scarborough. He said lottery ticket sales are strong at raceway locations, which comes as no surprise to Sadler. ``NASCAR fans are really loyal to people who sponsor the cars,'' Sadler said. ``People who see me on the street, they say, `There goes Hermie Sadler. He drives the Virginia Lottery car,''' said the driver, whose younger brother, Elliott, teams up with him in a new television ad featuring the lottery's new ``Pole Position'' scratch game. The Virginia Lottery is the first state lottery to sponsor a NASCAR driver, but Virginia has sponsored Sadler before. He had the ``Virginia Is for Lovers'' tourism slogan on his Busch series car in 1993 and 1994.(Arlington Journal/AP)(8-15-2001)

Labonte Tests Darlington: #18-Bobby Labonte completed a two-day test at Darlington Raceway on Tuesday in preparation for the Southern 500 on Labor Day weekend. Labonte noted that he and his team were trying different chassis setups to get a leg up on the Darlington track, considered one of NASCAR Winston Cup racing's most difficult to master. Labonte was joined at Darlington by BGN drivers Lyndon Amick and Dan Pardus.(The State)(8-15-2001)

Simpson Meets With NASCAR: on Tuesday's Totally NASCAR on Fox Sports Net, it was reported that Bill Simpson met with NASCAR officials in Washington, DC recently and that Simpson will be at the Dale Earnhardt Accident Findings Announcent in Atlanta on Aug 21st(8-15-2001)

NASCAR Kids: There were some proud NASCAR papas at Loweís Motor Speedway on Tuesday night as Stephen Wallace and Tim Andrews picked up Legends Racing championships. Wallace, the 13-year-old son of Winston Cup driver Rusty Wallace, had to sweat it out for a win until the 10th and final night of competition in his Young Guns Bandolero division. Andrews, the son of Winston Cup crew chief Paul Andrews, picked up the inaugural Thunder Roadster championship.(See full story at NASCAR.com)(8-15-2001)

DW tests UPDATE: Darrell Waltrip was asked by Melling Racing to test in Michigan on Tuesday of this week. DW went up to MIS and helped the team get dialed in, driving a Dodge for the first time and taking some test laps(8-10-2001)UPDATE: " I went to Michigan before the race last week and finally got to test with Stacy Compton's 92 car. I finally made it to the track without it raining. I was supposed to test with them a few months ago in Chicago, and we got rained out. I tested with them last Tuesday, driving the car and giving them some ideas. Hopefully I was able to help them. I'll tell you this; it felt great to get behind the wheel of a car again. I really wanted to drive the Dodge and see what kind of power it had under the hood. I was very pleased.(FoxSports)(8-15-2001)

(8-14-2001)

Robby Gordon fired up UPDATE: Robby Gordon had a fire in the #31 Lowes Chevy, the telemetry box used by NBC to monitor rpms, speed and braking reportedly caught on fire when the batteries used to power it came out. (see a Gaston Gazette Column on this: Robby Gordon falls prey to high-tech sabotage(8-13-2001)UPDATE: Scott Cluka, the #31 team's rear-tire changer, was burned when the box blew up in his face as he tried to unbolt the shoe-box-size piece of machinery from the floorboard of Gordon's Chevy. Cluka was not seriously injured, but Smith says the obvious danger from the telemetry box means that that device won't be in the team's car this weekend at Michigan.(Winston Salem Journal)(8-14-2001)

Racecar Stolen UPDATE 2 and Recovered: the #70 Star Nursery car normally driven by Greg Pursley in the Winston West series was stolen recently outside of the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It's a 2000 Chevy Monte Carlo owned by the father of the late Chris Trickle(Dick's nephew - see my Tribute Page about Chris). See full story with ways to contact the team with info at the Racing West site(1-23-2001)UPDATE: Las Vegas Motor Speedway is offering a $15,000 reward(up from $5,000) for information leading to the conviction of whoever stole the #70 Star Nursery Southwest Series car(1-25-2001)UPDATE 2 - Racecar Recovered: An alert racing fan's tip to police in Calgary two weeks ago has led to the recovery of a NASCAR race car that was stolen in Las Vegas earlier this year. "He'd been going through the Internet and saw that a race car in Vegas had been stolen back in January," Staff Sgt. Ken Marchant of the Calgary Police Service said Monday. "When he was at the races the next time, he saw this particular race car. It was a new car on the circuit and he noticed similarities between this car and the one stolen out of Vegas, even though this one's been repainted." The Chevy Monte Carlo had been repainted blue and green and was numbered 24. It had been racing in Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia for the last two months. The name of its driver, Darin, was emblazoned above each door. The car, owned by Craig Keough of Keough Motor Sports in Las Vegas, had been on display for a weekend racing seminar in the Nevada city last January. The car and its trailer disappeared from a shop adjacent to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the middle of the night. Keough had posted a $15,000 US reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for stealing his stock car. "This unit here didn't have an engine in it and subsequently the engine in it is stolen, and we've recovered some other stolen race car engines as a result of the search warrant," said Marchant. The car and engines were among a total of $400,000 in stolen goods recovered during a raid last week near Chestermere Lake, just east of Calgary. Darin Bruce James, 28, of Calgary is charged with five counts of possession of stolen property. Police said further charges will be forthcoming at a court appearance Tuesday.(Canadian Press/Calgary Plus)(8-14-2001)

Dale Jr Recognized: Dale Earnhardt, Jr., recognized by the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the PUSH/Rainbow Coalition Sports Banquet: Thursday, Dale Jr., was whisked to Chicago, where he was recognized by the Rev. Jesse Jackson at the PUSH/Rainbow Coalition Sports Banquet. Earnhardt Jr. also presented a special award to African-American driver Morty Buckles, who recently won his first major NASCAR late model race. Following the banquet, Dale Jr. returned to upstate New York Thursday evening for the Watkins Glen race weekend(Budweiser PR)(8-14-2001)

Softball League: The Totally Raciní Softball League was created by Bob Hubner, Owner of Race City Resumes. Hubner decided to start a league for NASCAR team employees in Charlotte after seeing his brother play in a corporate league in Orlando. The NASCAR Softball League is comprised of NASCAR Race Team employees. A softball team may correspond to a specific race team, it may be composed of personnel from a particular organization, or it may be a composite of employees from different teams or organizations. A softball team member does not necessarily have to work for the race team that he/she is playing ball for. If a particular race team does not have enough players to form a softball team then they may combine their players with some other race team and create a joint team. If cheering on your favorite NASCAR team on Sunday is not enough, come to North Mecklenburg Park in Huntersville, NC on Tuesday nights.(Race City Resumes)(8-14-2001)

Brack in NASCAR? UPDATE 2: Kenny Brack, of CART, in the field at Indy for IROC's season finale, has been mentioned for a Winston Cup ride, possibly with A. J. Foyt. With the CART series in the middle of a sharp decline, the 1999 Indy 500 winner and 1998 Indy Racing League champ, at 35, is looking at his options. "Sure, I'm interested in NASCAR in the future, but right now I'm focused on the CART championship," Brack said. That tour's points leader won at Chicago Sunday, so he's clearly on top of his game. "Through the IROC series, I've made several friends in the NASCAR circuit, and if there would be an opportunity for me to go NASCAR, I would look very seriously at it. NASCAR in the future, yes, but not next year." NASCAR intrigues Brack: "I am very humble for the fact that it is a different series with different cars and everything, and there are a lot of good drivers in NASCAR," he said. "So if I would go to NASCAR, I know it wouldn't be easy. I never underestimated any series I've gone into. Yes, if you practice enough you can get good, but there will be 50 drivers there and they're all good. So you're not going to come in and do anything unless you've done your homework. And even then it's difficult(in part from a column in the Winston Salem Journal). NOTE: Robin Miller also metioned Brack to Foyt's #14 Conseco car in the future a few nights ago on ESPN2's RPM 2Night(8-4-2001)UPDATE: on Monday's RPM 2 Night show (ESPN2 at 7:00pm), Dr Jerry Punch said not to be surprised to see Brack run at the 2002 Daytona 500(8-7-2001)UPDATE 2: ESPN.com has learned that CART driver, Kenny Brack has already signed with Chip Ganassi for the 2002 CART season and Indianapolis 500. Meanwhile, neither Brack nor Ganassi would confirm or deny a deal on Monday. Besides the money and Indy, another enticement for Brack to go to Ganassi could be NASCAR. Chip fields a two-car Winston Cup team and Kenny has declared he definitely wants to try stock cars in a couple years.(ESPN)(8-14-2001)

Newman to Test: Ryan Newman will test his #02 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Ford Taurus during a Penske South test at Kansas Speedway on Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2001(8-14-2001)

(8-13-2001)

Tara Parker Update: Canandaigua(NY) native Shawn Parker said his wife, Tara, is "doing OK" after a heart transplant July 28 in North Carolina. Parker, 27, a former mechanic for dirt-track racer Danny Johnson, has lived in the Charlotte area since graduating from high school in 1993. He works as a rear tire changer for Mark Martin's #6 Viagra car(and is the car chief). Shawn and Tara were married last November, and doctors determined in May that Tara, who was born with a heart defect, would need a new heart. "We haven't even been on our honeymoon yet," Parker said. Shawn found out the weekend of the Winston Cup race at Pocono Raceway that a heart was found for Tara. He was surprised when team owner Jack Roush flew him back to the Winston-Salem area hospital to be with his wife. Parker visited one of his old haunts, Canandaigua Speedway, for a Thursday night DIRT race and said he was able to renew some old acquaintances. "I had a lot of people come up to me and ask about Tara," Parker said. "That means a lot to me and her. That's what keeps her going."(Syracuse Online)(8-13-2001)

Graves at DEI UPDATE: Fred Graves, former crew chief for the #14 AJ Foyt team and DEI CTS team, is now the Car Chief at Dale Earnhardt Inc(DEI) for driver #15 Michael Waltrip(CNN/SI Qualifying Coverage)(8-11-2001)UPDATE: Fred Graves, who had worked as a freelance consultant earlier this season, is back with Dale Earnhardt Inc., as of last week, serving as car chief for Michael Waltrip's #15 Chevrolet. "I talked to them Wednesday, and they said the plane leaves Thursday," Fred Graves said of his recent return to DEI, where he formerly served as crew chief for Ron Hornaday's Craftsman Trucks series entry. Fred Graves manages the race-day crew for Waltrip's car, as well as helping out with in-shop matters during the week. "This is a young crew," he said. "They were just trying to add a little more depth and experience to the team."(Syracuse Online)(8-13-2001)

Microsoft and NASCAR? Microsoft, Bill Gates' multi-billion-dollar company, continues to rebuff NASCAR's best efforts at signing a sponsorship deal. Even ace salesman Jeff Gordon has been unable to persuade Gates to get on board the NASCAR marketing train(Winston Salem Journal)(8-13-2001)

The Big Cars: NASCAR officials plan to "phase in" the new "big car" rules next season, according to top Winston Cup drivers. The concept was tested by Sterling Marlin at Talladega in April - a car with a three-inch taller roof, a three-inch wider front bumper and a straighter windshield. If that car is to be used in next February's Daytona 500, NASCAR would like to run it first this fall at Talladega in October. That "big car" would eventually be used at every track. The major drawback at the moment is that the taller roof keeps air off the rear spoiler, which leads to faster speeds at Daytona and Talladega and less rear downforce at the other tracks. It is unclear how NASCAR might resolve that problem(Winston Salem Journal)(8-13-2001)